The Original Whiskey Sour Recipe
The whiskey sour is a mixed drink containing whiskey (often bourbon), lemon juice, sugar, and optionally, a dash of egg white. With the egg white, it is sometimes called a Boston Sour. With a few bar spoons of full-bodied red wine floated on top, it is often referred to as a New York Sour. It is shaken and served either straight up or over ice.
Ingredients
- 2 parts bourbon
- 1 part lemon juice
- ½ part sugar syrup
- ½ part egg white
- Cubed ice
- Garnish with cherry and an orange slice
Directions
- Put ice and all of the ingredients into a shaker and shake hard for about 20 seconds to chill the liquid really well
- Strain the mix into a glass filled with ice and garnish with the cherry and orange slice
History
The traditional garnish is half an orange slice and a maraschino cherry.
A variant of the whiskey sour is the Ward 8, which often is based on bourbon or rye whiskey, and includes both lemon and orange juices, and grenadine syrup as the sweetener. The egg white sometimes employed in other whiskey sours is not usually included.
The oldest historical mention of a whiskey sour was published in the Wisconsin newspaper, Waukesha Plain Dealer, in 1870.
In 1962, the Universidad del Cuyo published a story, citing the Peruvian newspaper El Comercio de Iquique, which indicated that Elliott Stubb created the "whisky sour" in 1872.
Need to properly equip your bar or lounge? Try these sections out.
The Speakeasy
The Coffee House
Leave a comment